Last week we were in Florida on a beach. And I wanted to see dolphins, and joked "I'm going to send them a psychic call and ask them to come." It was
a joke, but I did make an effort, unbeknownst to anyone around me.
Exactly five minutes later a group of them appeared in front of us and were jumping and playing! My husband just kept saying, "that is so wierd, that
is so weird..."

Probably just a coincidence, but I wonder if we could learn to communicate without any tools at all.

I saw a documentary showing a chicken in a cage, surrounded by screens on every side. When there was an eagle shown on top, it would shriek in a way,
and act in a way. Idem when shown a fox on the side. Each move and shriek was different, depending on the animal shown. It was a way of warning
the others of what type of danger was coming, and from what direction.

So, to say that language has to be defined in accordance to what we humans are conceived to do and impose it on other species is a form of
anthropomorphism. A dolphin can't articulate like us, it's way of speaking might be so alien to us it could take decades upon decades before
understanding it correctly.

There is a human equivalent. The Inuit have more than a hundred different words to name different snow states and we have only a few. It would take
us years to be able to understand all the subtleties of what they are used to perceive in snow manifestations. Imagine about what another specie has
to say...

When my bird talks to me, in its own language, I understand what it wants. Animals are like humans on THAT aspect; to understand them, we have to
listen.

but as one who professes to be a student of the mysteries
surely you know that the natural realm is beyond good and evil.
i certainly don't subscribe to the idea of a "noble dolphin" or "noble savage" for that matter.
that would be anthropomorphizing them wouldn't it now?

and there are levels to sentience/awareness, we are not alone on this planet.

the shamanic dreaming awake was something i read like, 20 yrs ago and was shown by EEG readings.

that said i'd like to add to your contributions re our simian relatives and there going-ons.

female chimpanzees have been observed "cheating" on their mates
[ that is the alpha-male they are currently paired to, with a beta.]

So, to say that language has to be defined in accordance to what we humans are conceived to do and impose it on other species is a form of
anthropomorphism.

Would it be any more anthropomorphic than defining chess in terms of how humans are conceived to play it? I don’t think so. All definitions are, by
definition, anthropomorphisms, since they are intended to make things comprehensible to human beings. Maybe you should have a look at some basic
linguistic texts before we take this argument any farther.

Besides, the only languages we are sure of were invented by humans. I don’t want to repeat myself, but ‘language’, whether human or otherwise,
is a lot more than simple communication. A bird’s mating dance and an air-raid siren are both forms of communication, but only a very
undiscriminating person would call them language.

The way I understand the OP article, what these scientists are planning to do is record a lot of dolphin vocalizations, analyze them to find patterns
that repeat themselves (patterns that they hope could be analogous to common words or phrases), then play these back to the dolphins and see how they
react.

It is a translation machine based on hope. There’s no very sophisticated science here, apart from whatever analytical methods are to be used to
identify the patterns of vocalization. These guys are whistling in the dark.

Listen, I’d like to have animals talk to me, too. Dolphins aren’t my favourite beasts by any means, and I certainly don’t think they’re
anywhere near as intelligent as humans or even chimps, but they’re rather cute because they look as if they're smiling. All the same, I’d rather
my dog or my cats could talk to me than any dolphin. They communicate pretty well without language as it is; imagine the conversations we would have
if they could talk!

Ok I remember something from years ago about finding a dolphin with an extra set of fins. They are supposed to be reminants of legs.

And now the extraordinary discovery of a bottlenosed dolphin with an extra set of flippers has provided living proof of the theory. At first glance
it looks like any other of its kind. But closer inspection reveals a rogue set of rear fins.

Each the size of a human hand, the fins are thought to be the remains of a pair of hind legs, adding to evidence that dolphins once walked on all
fours

From what I understand is that fossils were found of dolphins from when they were a 4 legged creature. Perhaps they will have stories passed down
generation to generation about this?

It is thought the dolphin's land-loving ancestors first crawled into the sea to escape predators or seek food between 50million and 35million years
ago. Their hind legs became smaller and smaller before eventually disappearing altogether. The new aerodynamic shape reduced drag in the water,
speeding their swimming.

Visit the link for a picture and article. What I want to know though, is did they kill this wonderful creature?

Originally posted by Danbones
well maybe it would be
hey
We are sorry we kicked you Humans out of the pool for taking a pee
why don't we let bygones be bygones and lets all go frolicking in the deep together
just like old times...

oooopsi
no gills
who knew?

Dolphins have gills?
No, they don't.

I wish I could reply with a more pertinent answer,but I've had a skinfull.

The same goes for all animals, meaning; even if they could speak in English words, there would probably not be a syntax or a order of words we could
understand. They could be communicating in a sophisticated manner much like us, and there is a chance we would still find ourselves dumbfounded. And
like some have mentioned, we would probably be highly disappointed. Humans tend to sympathize with cute animals, but the sad truth are that dolphins
are as primitive as us; they are playful and curious, but they rape, kill and fight.

Have anybody here seen the fantastic movie 'Rainy with a chance of meatballs'? In the movie there is a monkey with a thought-translator. It's
hilarious all the way, but it's probably and example of how much we would understand from an intelligent species!

Most social animals would be able to communicate with us on some level or another. To understand - one must only look at different human cultures.
Among the first things that one language culture will seek to learn about another revolves around basic, common needs. Everyone has a concept for
food. Now - some cultures may not distinguish between Bacon and Pork like we do in English - but we quickly point to objects and make the sounds we
associate with those objects.

I would start there with dolphins. A dolphin likes a good meal just as much as any human likes a good meal, I'm sure.

The question really lies in whether or not the dolphin recognizes us as being able to communicate - or are we seen as forces beyond comprehension?
For example - many people interact with computer programs on a daily basis - they don't know how the computer works or really care to - they simply
know that when they go through a sequence of operations, the computer responds.

In such a relationship - the computer could be just as, if not more sentient than the operator, and the operator still interact and communicate with
the computer, without really realizing there is an actual 'being' to the computer.

Now - I don't want this to turn into an AI discussion. We don't have real AI. Watson doesn't chalk up to AI (it's actually a rather simple
algorithm paired with absolutely massive databases to be used by the algorithm) - your computer isn't sentient, and computers are not going to be
"smarter than a person" - as it's comparing apples and oranges. Computers are measured in terms of their mathematical computation capability - and
the human brain simply doesn't work in the same way (we don't really know how it works) - so it's kind of like trying to say your lawnmower is more
powerful than any table saw ever made.... perhaps true to some degree - but table saws don't mow lawns, and lawnmowers don't saw tables (ha-ha, I
made a funny).

Anyway - the point is that the whole process of communication goes much faster when worked from both ends - if the dolphin realizes that we are trying
to communicate with them (and the other way around). If we are simply a means to a fish from their perspective - it's not going to be nearly as
rewarding to try and develop communication with them.

That said - it is very interesting to contemplate communicating with an entirely different species - even if it is in very crude and simple contexts (
"I"m happy, I'm sad, I've had a good day - I liked swimming with you" - that sort of thing). Concepts of spiritualism and religion may or may
not exist within them... you would think they would spend a substantial amount of time thinking about something... the nature of existence, you would
expect to be a common topic amongst living things.

But how to actually communicate such things to something so profoundly removed from our own methods of communication and society... that's
challenging - and presupposing a lot about the nature of dolphins.

This content community relies on user-generated content from our member contributors. The opinions of our members are not those of site ownership who maintains strict editorial agnosticism and simply provides a collaborative venue for free expression.